La Bataille d' Eggmuhl 1809

Lewis & Clark To San Diego Via Europe

Sacajawea Son Becomes Württemberg Prince Pal

There are ties to the past we do not know about or understand, but La Bataille can be our tour guide to trip from history to the present. Take the Lewis & Clarke expedition as one leg of the historical journey. In 1803, Napoleon is about to go to war again with Great Britain but is hard up for cash. The Americans are interested in purchasing New Orleans from the French, who had managed to get it back from Spain after 40 years. The French also control a vast territory the size of the United States, which except for New Orleans, is virtually devoid of any organized governmental oversight. Napoleon knows he can do nothing with what is called Louisiana, decides to cash in on his North American holdings. History knows this event as the Louisiana Purchase. Napoleon goes on to fight the Napoleonic wars and changes European history. Not just large states like France and Britain are changed, but small countries like Württemberg become radically reshuffled. Meanwhile, United States President Thomas Jefferson, as much a scientist as statesmen, decides to unwrap what is in his Louisiana package, and sends Lewis & Clark to explore what might be there, as well as claim the unknown Oregon territories for the United States. But this meditation is not about the famous exploration, but rather how it is intertwined with our discussions of La Bataille today.

While Lewis & Clark were organizing their expedition in 1804, they came to make the acquaintance of a young Shoshone woman who would become their interpreter, guide, and perhaps the most important individual in the expedition, Sacajawea. Sacajawea was married to a French-Canadian trapper, Toussaint Charbonneau, who was also part of the American expedition. Sacajawea was several months pregnant when her participation in the expedition began. She gave birth to her son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, in early 1805. He became a part of the expedition and became a favorite of William Clarke. Upon the expedition’s return to St. Louis in 1806, the young Jean— called Pomp by Clarke-- would eventually be adopted by his godfather and raised by him.

In 1823, the now grown Charbonneau, met the Württemberg Duke Friedrich Paul Wilhelm, nephew of King Friedrich I, King of Württemberg while the duke was visiting St. Louis. Their resulting friendship led to the Württemberg duke inviting Charbonneau to return to Europe where Charbonneau lived for six years, learning both German and Spanish. The Württemberg duke and the young American, born on the Lewis & Clarke expedition, travelled throughout Europe and North Africa.

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